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Classes
This course will offer you
a review of the role played by the news media in the conduct
of politics, both international and domestic. We'll explore
how the news media influence policy and politicians, as well
as how politicians and policymakers use the media in their
work. We will take a broad view of "politics," ranging from
U.S. domestic campaigns and elections to international
negotiations, political disputes and military
interventions.
Your questions,
impressions and discussion are very much encouraged in this
class. This is not a "lecture" course. Just as in the
political science and communication fields, independent,
analytical and critical thinking is highly valued. So your
contribution to class discussion will be reflected in your
final grade.
You'll be expected to
attend class; it's hard to imagine how learning can take
place without your attendance
and active participation. If this prospect does not appeal
to you, please free your seat for another student. Unexcused
absences
may result in the automatic lowering of your grade.
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Reading
How much you gain from
this class will depend in large measure on how well you
prime yourself for the issues we will examine. Readings have
been chosen not only to impart information, but also to help
you develop insight into the issues we cover in this course.
Even if every reading is not discussed explicitly in class,
to participate effectively in class, to gain the most from
the examples we explore and to write the best papers, you
will find it critical to complete the readings.
Three books are required
reading for this course:
• Strobel,
Warren P. Late-Breaking Foreign Policy. U.S.
Institute of Peace, 1997. ISBN 1-878379-67-4
• Bennett, Lance.
The Politics of Illusion. (5th Edition) Addison
Wesley Longman, 2002. ISBN 0-321-08878-6
• Sabato, Larry.
Feeding Frenzy. Lanahan Publishers, Baltimore,
2000. ISBN 0-9652687-8-0
Other required readings
include all or parts of papers and articles, many of which
are available on this course web site, and will be linked
directly from the online syllabus. See the "Readings"
and "Syllabus"
pages of this web site.
The News
It's hard to imagine how
one could understand "media and politics" without following
the news media. Therefore, students in this course are
expected to follow the news media regularly. The news
will be discussed in class. Although a variety of media are
suitable for this purpose, I direct you to The New York
Times, either in hard copy or on the internet, as a
consistent, high-quality source of "what's going on."
Substantial-discount newspaper subscriptions are available
at the Newark Newsstand. And the Times is available online
with a free subscription at www.nytimes.com.
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Writing
Perhaps the single most
important skill in political science communication careers
is thoughtful, insightful, analytical, concise, quality
writing. Industry professionals repeatedly say college
graduates don't have the writing skills they need for their
first industry jobs. Therefore, your writing is highly
valued in this course. Your grade will be very heavily
influenced by the quality and the content of your
writing.
• Avoid
unnecessary verbiage, rhetoric or embellishment. To help
keep your writing to-the-point, I will not read beyond
the page limit.
• Several writing
assignments are required during the semester. Due dates
will be announced in class and are included in the
syllabus. They may be periodically updated on the class
web site.
• There will be no
final exam. A final writing assignment will be due by
4:00pm December 10, 2002.
• Assignments
submitted after their due date will receive
automatically-reduced grades.
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Computer
Assignments:
The University of Delaware
is committed to developing student computer
literacy.
• Students are
required to communicate with the instructor by email (my
email address is on this web site).
• Students are
encouraged to investigate internet sites as sources, and
should critically evaluate them for content, reliability and
timeliness.
• Assignments may be
submitted
electronically (see below).
• Some readings used
in this course may be found on the course Internet site.
Please familiarize yourself with using this site. To read
some of these electronic documents, you may need to install
the Adobe Acrobat Reader program on your computer; it's a
free, easy-to-install download, available here.
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Grading
Writing, thinking and
class participation (as well as mere attendance) are
critical elements of this class. Please remember that (just
as in the real-world) timeliness counts; late assignments
will automatically lose credit. Your grades will be based on
these elements:
- Writing assignments -
all together 50% of grade
- Final paper - 35% of
grade
- Attendance &
participation - 15% of grade
Note: Students missing
more than three classes may automatically experience
a grade reduction.
Grades will be posted
periodically on the "Grading"
page of this web site.
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Professionalism
and Integrity
You are expected to
observe and uphold the University's
code of academic integrity
and the rules against plagiarism.
Plagiarism is a major, career-killing offense in the
communication industry. Violations in this course will
not be treated lightly and will be referred to University
authorities in accordance with established
university regulations.
Warning: I have a reputation for prosecuting
plagiarism cases.
Your written work should
have a professional appearance. Even your most creative work
will suffer from poor writing, spelling and
formatting.
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Guidelines
for your papers:
• Papers must be
typewritten or computer printed and double-spaced.
Handwritten documents will not be accepted.
• On the first
page, include your name, the course name and number, the
date, the assignment title and any title you choose for your
work.
• On all
subsequent pages, include your name and page
number.
• Staple your
pages; paper clips don't withstand your book bags or my
collection piles.
•Electronic
submission of assignments - You are encouraged to submit
your assignments electronically, subject to the same
deadlines noted on the syllabus. You may submit assignments
in various electronic forms, if you wish:
• web pages
containing links, graphics, text of your paper, photos
and other resources
• CDs you create
containing text, links, graphics, photos,
videos
• presentations
you create containing text, links, graphics and other
resources
Electronic submissions may
be sent as email attachments, or may be posted on a web site
of your creation for which you have given me (in email) the
correct, functioning web address. I will confirm receipt of
your electronic submissions; do not assume I have
received your material until you receive my acknowledgement.
If you submit assignments electronically, it is your
responsibility, not mine, to verify that all the links,
elements and other resources actually function properly from
a standard internet browser. You will be graded on what I
can see, not on what you intended to submit.
• Use your
spell-checker, but don't expect it to flag correctly-spelled
words used incorrectly. For that, you
must...
• Proofread your own
work.
• Proofread
your own work.
• Proofread
your own work!
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Syllabus